Algorithms for computing sine, cosine, and tangent functions have been developed. Volder formulated a CORDIC algorithm to utilize hardware implementation for evaluating trigonometric functions, that algorithm making use of a special sequential arithmetic unit for implementing a prescribed sequence of conditional additions or subtractions for evaluating trigonometric functions.
The CORDIC algorithm was generalized by Walther, in A Unified Algorithm For Elementary Functions, Spring Joint Computer Conference, 1971. The CORDIC algorithm is utilized typically for fixed point arithmetic implementation of sine, cosine, and tangent functions, but generally is more difficult to apply to computation of inverse trigonometric functions. There is a need for fast, efficient determination of inverse trigonometric functions.